Jim,

I wrote to you back in May '11 thanking you for supplying all the info I needed to win my COPD appeal. I was so happy. I waited on the back pay (3 yrs) and made plans. Nine months later in March '12, i finally get paid.

Moral of the story: Don't get in a hurry for backpay just because you win your appeal. Also, believe it or not, I called the 800 # first of Mar. The was great. He said "this has been long enough. I'm getting my supervisor involved." Within 4 days a lady from VA called saying expect a large deposit within 7 days. In three days it hit. Funny, but I wasn't as happy to get the money as I thought I'd be. But I'm still gonna keep it!!!!!

Thanks for what you do,

Reply:

The patience of a saint and the tenacity of a junkyard dog are the two most important requirements to success when working with your VA. Sometimes it isn't about the money. It means more that you've prevailed and your claim was validated. To be denied seems to imply that your claim wasn't seen as truthful. That stings. It's gratifying when that gets corrected.